Archive for the Tech Comm Category

This blog has had a pretty good run, but for various reasons it is being moved off of the WordPress servers and onto the MadCap Software servers. The new home for the blog is http://www.madcapsoftware.com/blog/ .

There are multiple reasons for this.

First, I have always struggled with the limitations of the WordPress hosting preventing me from including MadCap Mimic demos/tutorials/recordings. By moving to our own servers I will now be able to include much more dynamic content.

Second, with my travel schedule being heavy March through May, and then also heavy September through November, this blog was a bit sporadic with heavy posting at times and then little activity while I was on the road. Moving to the MadCap servers will enable me to include guest posters from R&D, Tech Support, etc. to keep the information coming when I am unavailable.

In any case, the blog is not dead, or gone, or anything else, it has simply moved to a better home. Please join me at the new location (don’t forget to update your bookmarks/links) for the latest MadCap Software information.

MadCap Software is excited to announce the latest release of MadCap Flare.

Flare 7 redefines the industry again with advanced authoring features, expanded content management support and compliance for government accessibility standards. With this latest release, MadCap Software remains committed to satisfying the technical communication needs of our customers throughout the world representing thousands of companies across dozens of industries.

“With change tracking and enhanced table functionality among its many new features, we see Flare 7 as further vindication of our decision to migrate from Adobe FrameMaker.” -Dr. Adrian Morse, Picis, Inc.

“Flare 7 is easily the most versatile and capable authoring tool that I’ve used. MadCap clearly listens to their customers, and their support is second to none.” -David Lee, Sage Ltd.

“Flare is already the best information development tool out there, and now it’s the leader of the pack in accessibility.” -Eddie VanArsdall, founder of VanArsdall InfoDesign

“MadCap Flare 7 addresses the needs of very small to global-scale companies.” -Ed Marshall, founder of Marshall Documentation Consulting

The MadCap road show was such a hit last year that we are doing it again in 2011. Except this year the tour will be expanded to 16 cities.

We will also be kicking off the start of the MadCap road show in Long Beach in conjunction with the WritersUA trade show. We heard from many people that it was tough to get time away from the office for more than one event per year. By launching our road show on March 13 in Long Beach people can attend both events without any extra time out of the office.

If you won’t be in Long Beach then don’t worry as we will be visiting the following cities between now and the end of May:

We are still working to lock down the specific venues in each city. Once that is done exact dates will be posted here and on the MadCap Software web site. For more information you can visit the MadCap Software Road Show 2011 page on our main site.

June

MadNewz, a quarterly newsletter written expressly by MadCap customers, launches. Chris Sullivan writes “FLARE SINGLE-SOURCING: MY TEN BEST PRACTICES” and presents a one-hour webinar (read the article). The Writers Block and MadCapSoftware form alliance to address the growing opportunity in the corporate information management and technical communications space in India.

Eddie VanArsdall writes the September MadNewz article, “TEN TIPS FOR IMPORTING FRAMEMAKER CONTENT INTO FLARE,” and presents a one-hour webinar (read the article).

Case Study: Picis Replaces Adobe® RoboHelp® and FrameMaker® with MadCapFlare to streamline workflows across Picis Business Groups and to create a consistent brand online and in print (read the full case study).

December

MadCap announces the 2011MadCapRoadshowKickoff, March 13, in Long Beach, CA (read more) as well as a 2ndMadCamp in March (read more). The company also announces plans to attend the 2011 WritersUAConference in Long Beach, CA;LocalizationWorld in Santa Clara, CA; DoDIISWorldwideConference in Nashville, TN; the 58th AnnualSTCSummit in Sacramento, CA; UA Europe in Brighton, UK; TechnicalCommunicationUK in Oxford, UK.

For years now I have been encouraging authors to get in the habit of using font-families with their Cascading Style Sheet settings. This helps to control any substitutions that might occur if the font you call for just doesn’t exist on that customers machine. Of course, for many authors it would be preferred to simply ship the fonts you want with the WebHelp you deliver, but this hasn’t been as easy as it might sound. Problems with font ownership, distributions rights, differing technologies, and more have always gotten in the way.

However, Ed Marsh has discovered a technique for doing just this; embedding fonts with your distributed WebHelp. It isn’t as easy as it sounds as there is a fair bit of work to it, and your selection of fonts is limited to those you can legally distribute. As a result, this may not be a solution for everyone but it is a huge step in the right direction.